Mocha Flavored Snow
by Leelei
Summary: JXA Aelita learns the true feeling of anger as her emotions errupt for the first time after her final materialization.
1. Part 1

Mocha Flavored Snow

By: Leelei

Disclaimer: I don't own Code: Lyoko 

Author's Note: Wow…I had originally planned on posting this two weeks ago. My, how time flies! Anyway, this is technically a one-shot, but since it ended up a lot longer than I had thought it would be, I decided to post it in three parts for easier reading. Hope you like it!

* * *

Sissi Delmas peeked out from behind a large, frost-covered tree in the schoolyard late one winter night as she delighted herself in spying on a young couple in the distance. She knew it was nearing curfew for the boarding students at Kadic Jr. High that Friday evening, but she couldn't help herself to stay and watch for something interesting to happen.

In the distance, standing near a grove of trees near one of the dorms, she could see a warmly bundled Jeremie Belpois was rubbing the arms of his thick winter coat with gloved hands. He watched his breath as he exhaled, showing just how cold he had become during the walk he was on with his girlfriend. He took his close friend's hands in his and longingly looked into her eyes.

"That Aelita…" Sissi fumed quietly from her hidden position as she zipped up her own coat, also feeling the frigid breeze as it blew by her. She glared at the pink-haired girl, with her brand new dark magenta winter jacket with the matching ear muffs and gloves, jealous of the loving looks she received from her boyfriend.

Aelita della Robbia (as Odd introduced her to their class at the beginning of that new school year, claiming that she was a distant cousin from his father's side of the family. Although, the keen principal's daughter could have sworn she heard Yumi once refer to the new student as Aelita Lyoko) was experiencing her first winter in Paris that year, as well as her first time at a French boarding school. Sissi blew her off right away after they had met, her own envy of Aelita's immediate acceptance into Ulrich's circle of friends and all the care and kindness she received from them already frustrating and angering her.

And if it wasn't enough for her to be friends with Ulrich, the last straw for Sissi was hearing that she and Jeremie had quickly become an official couple. The dark-haired teen found herself spying on the two more often after she learned of their relationship, telling herself that she only wanted something new to gossip about, but was truly fueled only by her raging jealousy.

She continued to watch Aelita and Jeremie as the two leaned in for a soft, quick kiss before Jeremie walked his girlfriend back to their dormitory building. They held hands and strolled closely together as they went, with Aelita's light giggling and laughter heard from her along the way.

Sissi felt the emotions of greed and hate flood through her. Although she was shivering then undoubtedly from the freezing temperature, part of her trembling was due in part to her bottled in rage. She knew that if she didn't let it out soon, she would snap.

"I'll find a way to bring that little princess down," she snarled to herself, an evil grin appearing on her features. "Then her life won't be so picture perfect anymore."

As Jeremie and Aelita neared their dorm building, a question popped into the young girl's mind. "Jeremie," Aelita asked as she stopped to turn and face him, Jeremie doing the same and taking a hold of both her hands again. 

"Yes, Aelita?" he asked, ready to fulfill any request of hers, as he had been doing ever since he perfected an anti-virus late that summer, allowing her to remain on Earth, free of X.A.N.A.'s viruses and control.

"Where did you say we were going to tomorrow?" Aelita inquired, a questioning look on her perplexed features.

Jeremie couldn't help but smile. He considered her to look cute when she was confused or asking questions about simple things on Earth, one of her characteristics that he had fallen in love with. "To the ice rink. Remember the small, frozen pond we passed by earlier on our walk in the grove near town?" He continued after a nod from Aelita, "Well, they block that off every winter and open it up for skating when the water freezes and the ice becomes thick enough. Ice skating is when you glide along the ice instead of walking, and to do it you need to wear special shoes called skates that have a very thin, extremely sharp blade underneath that allow you to stay balanced."

"Oh. Are you going ice skating?" asked Aelita.

"No," Jeremie replied. "Yumi, Ulrich, Odd, and I have been asked to work the drink stand. Tomorrow is their annual charity skate day. Instead of keeping the money the city receives for admissions to skate, they promised to donate it to a needy cause, like a shelter for the homeless or for a struggling local family. A lot of kids usually show up for it, so they ask Kadic to set up a refreshment stand every year. You wouldn't mind helping would you?"

Aelita still looked puzzled. "I don't think I understand. We sell…drinks? In the wintertime? When it's cold?"

"Yes," answered Jeremie. "But ones considered to be 'wintertime' drinks, like hot cocoa and coffee. Sometimes, people don't like to drink a lot of cold things during winter like the soda pop and all that artificial fruit juice Odd has hooked you on."

"Well, I would be glad to help. It sounds like it will be fun, too," said Aelita. "Especially since our friends will be there with us."

Jeremie smiled, remembering the other past years he had worked the drink table with his friends before meeting Aelita. "Yeah…this is the first time we've been able to help out there in a while. Last year, well…we were too busy fighting X.A.N.A. to even have a chance to go that day."

Aelita looked to the ground, a sudden guilty feeling washing over her. "I'm sorry…"

Jeremie let go of one of her hands and gently raised her chin, looking into her eyes again and smiling. "You don't have to apologize."

"But now I keep finding out just how much you and the others have sacrificed," replied Aelita. "And everyday I see here on Earth now, I'm reminded of everything you all had given up."

"And everything we went through is all worth it for moments like these, Aelita." He pulled her in close and whispered, "And many, many more to come…" The two kissed again. When they parted, Jeremie reached for the door and opened it. "After you, milady."

Aelita smiled. "Why thank you, kind sir," she replied with a laugh, as Yumi had jokingly told her to do one day, and walked in. Jeremie followed behind her and ended their time together at her dorm room door, promising to come for her early before breakfast the next morning so he could walk her to the ice rink. Then he hurried off to his own room on the next floor, crossing his fingers the entire way to evade that night what was referred to by the students at Kadic Jr. High as "Jim Patrol."

While in her own room, Aelita smiled to herself. She looked around at her still new surroundings. About a year after her first visit on Earth, Jeremie had finally found the key to unlocking an anti-virus for her. The whole Lyoko team rejoiced to finally see the end of X.A.N.A., and quickly forged the papers at Kadic for her to attend school with them once again, just at the beginning of the new school year that previous fall. Jeremie was even able to tap into the system and enroll her as a boarding student, Yumi convincing him that asking her parents to practically adopt a girl they had technically never met was out of the question, since Aelita's visit with them would be permanent after the summer was over.

The once virtual girl grinned at all the nice things they had filled her dorm with; books, stuffed animals, pretty glass trinkets, lovely little music boxes, soft pillows, lots of CD's and music, and much more. Jeremie had taken a habit of using all of his allowance to spoil her any chance he had, buying her nice clothes, candies, and even going out of his way to purchase an expensive Encyclopedia set she had asked him for to learn more about Earth, the pink-haired girl not fully understanding then the value of money created by mankind. Overall, the "Princess" nickname Odd gave her on Lyoko had definitely followed her along to Earth, finding its way to describe her materialized form as well.

With a contented sigh, she made her way over to her window, looking out and watching the stars in the night sky, as she did every night. In the recent months, she adored the snow and thought it made the landscape of the school simply beautiful, especially in a night setting. She rested her arms against the windowsill and peered out, always treasuring the chance just to be there and see it all.

After a few, long moments, Aelita suddenly noticed something move out of the corner of her eye. Sitting up and looking down towards the sidewalk leading from the building, she noticed Jeremie had his coat on again and was leaving.

"Jeremie?" she asked out loud, not understanding where he was going, since he always either had her with him when he went somewhere, or told her exactly where he would be. Feeling confused, she tried to open her window. After finding it locked, she tried her best to knock loudly on the glass. "Jeremie!" she called, trying to shout through it.

Finding her attempts useless, she turned and walked back over to the door, but as she reached for the handle she could hear Jim walking through the hall and chastising another student for being out late. She remembered Odd and Ulrich's warnings about being caught by Jim, since they had so many first-hand experiences at late night meetings with the principal of their own, and knew she couldn't go out there. Hurrying back to the window, all she could do was watch in utter disbelief as she saw Jeremie continue on his way.

Back outside, Sissi was finally returning to the dorms for the evening, sneaking by behind each tree as she tried her best to hide from any teachers that might have been outside for watch duty on the grounds. She was startled at the sight of Jeremie walking down the sidewalk and leaving, the entrance gates not closed yet as it was still just a few minutes before curfew went into effect. She almost laughed as she sarcastically wished him luck in her thoughts at getting back in, but, after thinking to herself, she could recall him and his friends slipping away unnoticed hundreds of times before, and had no doubt then that he could return just as easily.

Looking back at the building to see if any teachers had noticed Jeremie's departure and were following after him, her attention found its way to a small figure in one of the lower floor windows. It was Aelita, and as Sissi made her way closer to the building, unnoticed by the other girl, she realized just how troubled the pink-haired student seemed to look.

After making the connection of Aelita's worried features and Jeremie's sudden late-night expedition, Sissi quickly devised a plan. "Oh, this is gold…" she muttered quietly to herself. "This…is…_gold_."

* * *

What do you think? A hell of a lot different from _Death and the Swordsman,_ huh? ; ) Well, I hope you come back for part two tomorrow! 


	2. Part 2

Mocha Flavored Snow

Part 2

By: Leelei

Disclaimer: Nope, still don't own it.

Author's Note: I know mentioning the title from my other story in the summary seems like shameless advertising, but I truly didn't think anyone who didn't pick up on my username would recognize this as my writing after the last fic I posted. Well, I just wanted to let you guys know that I had mentioned before of wanting to get back to writing more about the actual show and not so much about the characters, and this is getting closer. Not all the way, but definitely more of what I had intended on posting here. : )

* * *

The next morning, Aelita woke up early to secure her chance to use the girl's shower on her floor before the other female students woke up and started their daily battle over it. She then changed into a new, warm outfit of hers and bundled up in her coat, ear muffs, and gloves. Waiting patiently outside her dorm room, Jeremie soon came for her and they walked to breakfast together. 

The two valued their time alone when they were occasionally early for their morning meals, but were happy to be joined by Odd and Ulrich later on, Yumi then meeting up with them just before they left for the rink. The talkative group was about to start on their way to make it in time for the opening of the rink when Yumi noticed Aelita's outfit and spoke up.

"Hey, Aelita, I was just outside and it's really cold this morning," she said, standing up from the table and zipping her dark colored coat, fumbling with the small zipper through her thick matching gloves. "Do you have a scarf yet?"

"Oh…yes," Aelita remembered after a pause to recall what a scarf was. "But I left it in my dorm room," she added dejectedly.

"It's okay, we still have some time to go get it if you want," Ulrich suggested as he stood as well and put on his dark green knit hat, already having his own coat on. "We don't want you to catch a cold."

Odd still sat at the table, shoveling the last of an eighth pudding cup into his mouth. "Yeah, Aelita," he mumbled before swallowing, finishing as he dropped the empty utensils on his plate and put on his own coat. "The temperatures can get really low here in the wintertime."

Jeremie shook his head at all the empty soufflé cups scattered over Odd's plate, wondering where he could have gotten all that pudding so early in the morning and cringing inwardly as he could only guess what affects the mass amounts of sugar would have on his friend's system later on that day. Turning back to Aelita, he spoke up, "I'll walk you back over to your dorm to get it. We can meet up with the others later."

Aelita suddenly felt guilty again. Remembering from the night before how she had caused her friends to miss out on having fun at the event the previous year, she didn't want to deprive them again. "No, it's okay Jeremie. I can go get it."

"Are you sure, Aelita? I don't mind."

"I'm positive. I know my way around Kadic well enough now, and I remember where the ice rink was when we saw it last night." answered Aelita. "Besides, if you four don't leave soon, you'll be late for the set-up."

"And you know how much we love setting up a drink stand and watching other people skate around all day long," Odd said sarcastically as he pushed in his chair. After he had donned his purple gloves, he put his ear muffs on again, bending them around the back of his head as to not mess up his hair. "We'll see you later then, Princess," he added.

"Bye Aelita," said Ulrich.

"See you in a little bit!" Yumi called as she and the other two boys left the cafeteria.

Jeremie sighed as he looked to his girlfriend again. "Are you sure?" he repeated.

Aelita almost laughed, smiling at his worried expression. "Yes, I'll be fine. See you there?"

"Yeah, I guess," Jeremie still seemed uneasy. Knowing displays of affection weren't tolerated very well while in front of public and during the day at the school, he could only force a smile for her before he left, hurrying to catch up with his friends while putting his gloves on as he ran.

Aelita returned to her dorm right away, quickly retrieving her scarf and starting at a fast pace towards the ice rink in town, just outside the school grounds. Along her way, she finally remembered her boyfriend's strange departure the night before and made a mental note to ask about it once she saw him again. Nearing the small grove of trees and shrubbery surrounding the skating rink, she slowed down, trying to catch her breath through the cold air.

"Well, well, if it isn't our new student," a voice said from behind her, startling the young girl.

Aelita stopped and turned around to see Sissi standing with her arms folded and a suspicious grin on her face. "Oh, uh…good morning, Sissi," she struggled with a response, knowing that the principal's daughter wasn't on the best terms with her friends.

"It is a good morning, isn't it?" Sissi asked in a tone to match the frigid temperature. "But, Aelita, I just wanted to ask you how has your first winter been?"

Aelita could feel her skin heating, the worry building inside of her that Sissi might have found out about Lyoko. "My…my…what?" she finally replied, stuttering.

"Your first winter in Paris?" Sissi asked more thoroughly.

"Oh," Aelita managed to hold in a sigh of relief. "It's been very nice. Everyone here at Kadic is so kind. Well, I…um…have to meet my friends now…"

"Wait a minute, Aelita," Sissi stopped her without moving an inch. "I really have to tell you something about your dear boyfriend, Jeremie."

Aelita's brow furrowed. "What is it?"

"Oh, it's nothing I'm sure you haven't already heard, but…"

"What? Is there something I need to know?"

Sissi had to turn her head and cover her mouth, hiding a smile at the new student's suddenly distraught tone. "Well, it's just that I saw him leaving the school last night…"

"You did, too?" Aelita became anxious. "Do you know where he went?"

"Oh, you don't know?" Sissi exclaimed, faking amazement in another one of her devious acts. "You poor, poor girl! I thought he would have broken the news to you by now!"

Aelita clasped her hands in a pleading gesture as she walked over to the other girl. "Sissi, please tell me."

Sissi bit her lip to contain her laughter at the gullible girl's innocence. "Oh, Aelita, I'm so sorry…but…I followed Jeremie last night, and, well…it turns out that you're not the only girl he likes to spend time alone with."

"What do you mean by 'alone with?'" asked Aelita.

"You know what I mean," Sissi replied coldly.

A strange feeling started to course through Aelita, one that she had never felt before. Still, she felt a trust in her boyfriend. "W-was he with…Y-Y…Yumi?" she stuttered weakly.

"No, Aelita," Sissi grinned evilly. "Not Yumi."

"Oh, Jeremie!" Aelita cried out, covering her mouth as she felt tears forming in her eyes. She finally realized what Sissi was implying, the painful emotions then surging throughout her.

Sissi chuckled. "Well now, what are you going to do about this? You can't let him just walk all over you like that."

"What should I do?" Aelita asked in a choked voice, still trying to hold in her tears.

"Oh, Aelita, doesn't it make you _angry_ to hear that your boyfriend is cheating on you?" Sissi asked. "Don't you feel used, embarrassed, broken?"

Aelita paused for a moment before she replied, the uncomfortable feelings all still new to her. "I…I think it does…"

"Well then, go tell him! Go and make sure that he knows you aren't just some trophy girl for him."

"A…a what?"

"Let him know that you aren't going to let him toy with your emotions."

"I'm not..?"

"Tell him that it's over, that you're both through."

"We are?"

"Why of course!" Sissi held in her laughter again. "You can't just let him play you like a fool! Aelita, if I were you, I would march right down there to that refreshment stand and give him a piece of my mind."

"I…I should do that, shouldn't I?" Aelita asked, regaining her composure, but feeling her angered thoughts rise. "How…how could he! After all we've been through together!"

"Yes," Sissi grinned. "And after all you've been through."

"Oh, thank you!" Aelita threw her arms around her. "Thank you, Sissi, for telling me!"

Sissi bit her lip as she patted the other girl's back. "Don't worry about it, Aelita. Just go show that little player who the _real _mastermind in this game is."

Aelita parted from her and smiled. "I will. Thank you so much."

Sissi quivered as Aelita hurried away, the dark-haired teen then exploding with her built-up laughter after she was gone. She quieted to small giggling just in time to see the show as she raced over to a large tree near the refreshment stand and hid to spy once again.

"Cocoa and coffee for the poor!" Odd was yelling as he and his friends stood behind the table full of coffeemakers, pitchers of hot cocoa, and plenty of Styrofoam cups. They had opened in time with the ice rink, and were already selling plenty of drinks to the many kids that had showed up early to skate.

"Odd, quit making it sound like we're only giving this stuff away to poor people!" Ulrich told him as he filled a cup of coffee and handed it to an adult that had already given his money to Jeremie. The young blonde boy was stuck on the money box after the group concluded he had the best math skills.

"Don't start, you two," Yumi cut in from where she was stirring cream into a cup of coffee for another sale. "The last thing we need is for you guys to get into an argument and start another all-out snowball war like you did two years ago."

"Aww, but Yumi!" Odd replied despairingly. "You know you had fun that day."

Yumi felt her cheeks turn a light red shade after remembering back when she and Ulrich had hid behind a small, nearby shed in the grove. She could still recall hearing his heart beating as she rested her head against his chest that afternoon, the two having to hold each other from the lack of space as they hid from the other kids during the snow war. Snapping out of her trance as another customer handed her a couple bills of money, she also remembered that, like Jeremie, she didn't have to daydream anymore, sharing a smile with Ulrich as he glanced over to her from where he was hanging a sign on the front of the table.

"Thank you," the Japanese teen said as she took the Euros from the customer and handed them to Jeremie. "I'll have your change for you in just a second."

Jeremie looked over the European currency in his hand and quickly computed the difference of the sale as he put it in the money box and fished out a few coins for change. When he handed the money back to Yumi, he looked up to see Aelita walking towards them. "Hey look, Aelita's here."

Yumi smiled as she saw the young girl. "Finally! I was beginning to worry that she had gotten sidetracked." She turned back to the young customer adding a handful marshmallows to his cocoa and handed him his change.

"_You_ were worried," Jeremie mumbled. He turned his back again to close the money box, securing it tightly as he heard his name being called.

"Jeremie!" a pretty, young girl yelled from where she stood with a small group of her friends, all holding their skates. She commuted to Kadic and was closer to his age than Aelita and his other friends, Jeremie recognizing her as someone he had talked to before. Although, he could never quite explain to the giggling sandy-blonde that he was already taken, hoping Aelita's presence would be able to explain things when he finally materialized her. "Oh, _Jeremie!_" she called, then more flirtatiously.

When Jeremie stood upright again, he smiled and waved at the girls, the gesture seeming to satisfy them as the first girl waved back and walked away with her friends giggling even more, but then he had no idea of how much he had just complicated his life.

"JEREMIE!" Aelita shrieked as she reached him, causing the young boy to jump in place.

Jeremie turned to his girlfriend. "Oh, there you are Aelita. Do you want something to drink?" he asked.

"You're so popular, aren't you?" Aelita retorted, using the same icy tone she had heard in Sissi's voice.

Jeremie's brow creased. "What?"

"You heard me!" Aelita snapped at him.

Jeremie was growing worried; he had never heard her talk like that before. "Aelita, what's wrong?"

"What's wrong?" she shouted back at him, Jeremie glancing around at all the attention she was drawing. Even Odd, Yumi, and Ulrich stopped the sales they were each in the middle of, ignoring their customers as they turned and watched in confusion.

"What do you think is wrong?" Aelita glared at him. "I know about those other girls. Was she one of them?"

"Who?"

"That girl that just walked by!" Aelita shot back, pointing towards the young girl from before. "Don't think I've never seen you smile or wave at them!"

"Aelita, they're just my friends."

Feeling a sob coming on as she started to break down on the inside, Aelita bit her lip and tried to hold in her tears. "Sure…your friends…" she quivered.

"You don't look well, here, sit down." Jeremie moved the money box to the table to clear the folding chair he had put it on, setting it closer to him.

"No!" Aelita suddenly shouted.

"Aelita?" Jeremie couldn't understand what was wrong. He was trying everything he could to pacify her, never once giving in to the thought of being in another fight.

"Jeremie…" Aelita's lip quivered even more as she choked out her words. "How…how… _how could you!_"

Tears slipped down her cheeks as the rage within her finally snapped. The pink-haired girl clenched her fists tightly, her anger boiling over. She turned to the drink table, noticing a large, tall pot of coffee that she knew Jeremie was partly responsible for keeping filled and warm during the day. Before realizing what she was doing, she had reached out and pushed it over, knocking it off the table along with a few of the other cocoa filled cups that had been set out for customers.

Luckily, everyone had jumped away in time as the steaming black and brown liquids poured out into the pure white snow after the containers toppled over. Many watching the scene gasped in shock as everyone nearby stood silent, Odd, Yumi, and Ulrich all frozen as they drew a blank as for what to do in response.

"Uh…" Odd finally spoke up, staring at the mess in front of the table and the empty coffee container lying in the snow. "Cocoa for the poor!" he yelled to the crowd.

Jeremie had been frozen in place as well, the entire scene passing by him as if it were a dream, leaving him stranded without the ability to stop what was happening. When he finally realized the severity of her action, Aelita had already been approached by Jim, the Kadic chaperone for the afternoon, and was being led back to the school, the young student crying into the teacher's side as they started on their way back to the school.

"Jeremie," Yumi finally broke his blank staring. "Go after her!"

"W-what just happened?" Jeremie was still shocked.

"I don't know, Jeremie," Ulrich spoke up. "But if you don't go figure out what's going on with her, she's not going to have much luck when they take her to the principal's office."

"…You're right." Jeremie replied. "I have to go talk to her. You guys cover for me." He slipped away just as the other teachers and chaperones were coming by with shovels and pails, along with towels for the table as Ulrich and Yumi then went to try and lift the heavy coffee maker.

"Great…does anybody have a calculator on them? We lost ours!" Odd joked, breaking the silence with the customers and getting them to laugh and order again, then only able to serve them cocoa they had left brewing in an untouched thermos while Jeremie hurried off to talk to Aelita.

* * *

The last part will be up tomorrow, barring any situations I might get into that would prevent me from getting to the computer and posting it. Until then, I hope you like the story so far, and please drop a review:D 


	3. Part 3

Mocha Flavored Snow 

Part 3

By: Leelei

Disclaimer: I don't own Code: Lyoko (but I _do_ wish that Cartoon Network would start playing it again!).

Author's Note: Ah, another one down, so many more to go: )

* * *

Jeremie sat on the bench patiently, his hands folded in his lap as he kept glancing towards the office door. Aelita was inside with the principal, and he hadn't been able to speak to her since her explosion at the ice rink. 

A few moments later, his attention was jerked back to the door as he heard it open, the principal appearing and speaking to him from the doorway. "Jeremie, there you are."

"Is Aelita okay?" Jeremie nearly exclaimed as he shot up from his seat.

"Yes, she's all right," the principal replied as he shut the door gently behind him. "But still a little upset." He looked back to the young student with a sigh. "She explained everything to me when I asked her what had happened, starting with last night and not knowing where you had went past curfew hours here at the school." Jeremie looked uneasy at the mention of his incrimination, but the principal continued on without regarding it. "And she also mentioned about how worried she had become at the thought of you visiting with other girls your age."

"But I wasn't," Jeremie quickly defended himself. "I…I don't see how she could have believed anything like that was happening!"

"Well, it turns out she was lied to," the principal's tone became disapproving, "when she met with Sissi just before she saw you this afternoon."

"Aww…" Jeremie groaned heavily in despair, realizing everything then and cursing himself in his thoughts for letting his girlfriend walk over to the rink alone.

"Aelita had told me that Sissi led her to believe that you no longer felt the same way for her as she does for you, but I reassured her that you two will always have a strong friendship. It doesn't seem like I had comforted her completely, so I would like you to go in there and talk with her."

"Okay, I will right now." Jeremie agreed. "Oh, and…sir?"

"Yes?" the principal acknowledged him.

"Will she be in any trouble for this?"

"No," the administrator answered, shaking his head. "In fact, I'm leaving right now to find my daughter and have a word with her for causing such a problem. Don't worry, Jeremie, I can promise you that something like this will not happen again."

Jeremie smiled. "Thank you sir. May I please see her now?"

"Yes you may," the principal dismissed himself and took his coat from a rack in the corner of the room, leaving for the ice rink to find Sissi.

Jeremie picked up a large bag that was on the floor near the bench and went over to the office door, knocking quietly before he entered.

"W-…who is it?" a young girl stuttered inside the room through muffled tears.

"Aelita, it's me," Jeremie paused, not knowing if he was going to upset her or not. "Jeremie."

"Jeremie?" Aelita seemed eager. "Um…you can come in, if you want."

Jeremie opened the door slowly, closing it behind him as he sat the bag down and walked over to Aelita. She was obviously distraught, her gloves, earmuffs and scarf all thrown aside on a chair next to her and with her coat unzipped as she sat on a chair in front of the principal's desk, bent over with her face in her hands, rubbing her eyes. When she looked up at Jeremie, he could see that she had been crying, her face red and tear-stained, with many Kleenexes scrunched up in one of her palms.

"Aelita…" Jeremie said gently, "Aelita, I'm so sorry."

"No, Jeremie," the pink-haired girl replied. "It's not your fault. …Now that I've been thinking about everything…I know that it was I who made the mistake, not you."

Jeremie couldn't help but to smile lightly, relieved to know that she really didn't have the hard feelings towards him that she had showed earlier. "May I sit down?" he asked.

"Yes, please…go ahead."

Pulling up a chair, Jeremie sat next to her. "Aelita, will you tell me what happened?" he asked.

Aelita held a downcast look, staring at her hands as she fidgeted with her used tissues. She didn't reply.

"Aelita?" Jeremie asked again. He took a hold of one of her hands, pulling away from the distraction. "_Angel?_" he asked quietly, the name he reserved especially for her when no others were around them.

"Don't call me that," Aelita said, sounding upset again as she pulled her hand back away from his. "I'm no angel anymore."

She knew what the nickname had implied; perfection. Jeremie viewed her to be the most kind, caring, intelligent, and beautiful creature in any world, not just Earth, and the name was to represent the level of purity he thought of her having held above all the other girls. She never grew angry, never was sarcastic, stubborn, greedy, or arrogant. Her talents were praised nearly everyday, yet she remained modest and grateful. She always had the best of manners, and got along with everyone she knew, never once starting a fight. Jeremie did all he could to flatter her; he knew that she always deserved it.

"I think you still are," the young blonde replied.

Aelita finally looked back to him again. "You do? Even after what I did?"

"Yes," Jeremie answered, gently taking a hold of her hand again, cradling it in his as she relaxed. "Now, please, tell me what happened."

Aelita swallowed hard before she started, holding in her tears. "It…it all started when I saw you leave last night, and didn't know where you were going. I was worried, so I tried to follow you, but the window wouldn't open for me to call to you and Jim was in the hallway, so…so I just had to forget about it. I thought you would bring it up the next morning…But then I saw Sissi, and she said…she said that you were seeing another girl! I…I just didn't know what to do, Jeremie. Those emotions…they were so real, so _strong_. And so uncomfortable…I just couldn't help myself but to push those things at the ice rink." She looked to the boy opposite her again. "I didn't hurt anyone, did I?"

"No," Jeremie answered, handing her another tissue from the box on the principal's desk.

"It…it must have been anger," Aelita added as she patted the tears away from her eyes with the soft Kleenex. "I must have been feeling anger…and hate, rage, sadness. Oh, it was so awful to experience those feelings!"

Jeremie felt sympathy for her, knowing that she was confused by the new emotions, but also disapproval towards himself for letting her get that way. "I'm sorry, Aelita."

"This isn't your fault, Jeremie." Aelita shook her head. "I shouldn't have held you back."

"Held me back?" Aelita looked up at the sudden expression in Jeremie's voice. "Aelita, you have _never_ held me back from anything. I waited two years to finally be with you, remember?" He continued, "I wasn't with another girl last night, if that's what you're still thinking."

"You weren't?" asked Aelita.

"No! That was a complete lie."

"But where did you go?"

"To get you something." Jeremie stood and retrieved the bag that he had brought in. Sitting back down, he gently set it on her lap. "Look and see what it is."

Aelita glanced between him and the large, white bag for a second, then slowly reached her hand inside. When she pulled out the thick, square box, she gasped at the picture and words of the cover. Jeremie had bought her a brand new pair of snow white ice skates in her exact foot size. Tears immediately swelled in her eyes again. "Oh, Jeremie…I don't deserve these."

"Yes you do," replied Jeremie. "I bought them just for you."

"Not after what I did," Aelita countered. "I'm…I'm so horrible…"

"No," Jeremie quickly cut her off. "No, you aren't." He reached over and lifted her chin, her sparkling eyes meeting his. "You're on Earth now, and your feelings are what make you human. Aelita, you're _expected_ to get those emotions sometimes."

"I am?"

"Yes." answered Jeremie. He searched through his coat pocket, pulling out a small slip of paper and handing it towards her. "Here, it's the receipt from last night. Proof that I wasn't with another girl, save the woman that rang up your present."

"No," Aelita pushed away the receipt. "I trust you," she set the box of skates aside. "I trust you now like I should have in the first place." She threw her arms around him, Jeremie returning the gesture as she held on to him. "I love you, Jeremie," she said.

"I love you, too." He whispered into her ear, "_My Angel_."

When they parted, Jeremie took her hand again and looked straight into her eyes. "Just promise me that you will _never _believe anything Sissi ever tells you again, okay?."

Aelita smiled. "I promise."

Jeremie returned the gesture and the two got up, the blonde boy picking up her new ice skates as Aelita put her gloves and other accessories back on. Before they left, Aelita took a hold of her present as she followed her boyfriend out of the room, clutching her boxed skates as the two walked closely together back to the ice rink. It was late in the afternoon by then, and Jeremie had explained to her that she would be able to skate with him when they closed the rink to the public for the evening and let all those who had helped out skate for free.

When they reached the rink, they both were eager to skate. Jeremie had a pair of skates left waiting for him near the packed away refreshment stand, given to him by Yumi, who had luckily always preferred buying boy's ice skates instead of the refined, brightly colored girls' ones, and had outgrown her old pair.

"Aw, how cute!" Odd commented exaggeratedly as he, Ulrich, and Yumi all sat on top of a hill near the grove, watching Jeremie try to balance on the ice below as he held onto a shaky Aelita, blindly attempting to teach her how to skate. The two were the only ones on the ice that late.

"Do you think we should go down there and help them?" asked Ulrich, sitting in between Yumi and Odd. The three were all lounging still in their own skates and layered clothes, even in the cold snow, all too exhausted to move after their intense hockey match on the ice earlier during their free skate.

"Nah, they'll be all right." Odd replied.

"Hey, do either of you know what happened earlier?" Yumi asked. "I mean, she looks okay now, but Aelita seemed to be so angry with Jeremie. I've never seen her act like that before!"

"Me neither, Yumi," said Odd as he could see and faintly hear Jeremie and Aelita laughing. "And maybe they'll tell us, maybe they won't. But since she's so happy now, you can be sure that whatever did happen between them, it doesn't mean the same thing anymore."

The End

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Thank you all so much for your awesome reviews! I hope you liked the story and please feel free to check out my new ones coming soon. ;D 


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